Grab a glass of wine and be prepared to stay a while. It's the History of Stellaspace...

So let me give you a little background on my shop. This is long, but once I get it out of my system you won't have to hear about it again, only new stuff, I promise.

I have a bin in my garage that is filled with various crafts that I have engaged in and swiftly gave up on. I have crocheted, I have embroidered, I have attempted to paint and collage as well. After successfully completing one paint by number that a friend gave me, I got another for $1 at the craft store and it took me six months to finish it (but I DID complete it, so I guess that can also go in the success category):

My painting skills in action

Being a person that starts things and doesn't finish them can be really unrewarding and kind of damaging to one's self esteem. It was time to change that.

Back in July 2008, I attended my first Renegade Craft Fair at Fort Mason in San Francisco with my friend Sara (Extremely talented crafter, makes amazing dresses for her daughter with vintage patterns and fabric, also can needlepoint like nobody's business). I left it feeling exhausted from just sheer amazingness overload but also just really inspired. If the people at that craft fair can do it, so can I. They are just people like me right? No these were people that FINISHED things!

So that very day (or maybe it was the next, it was almost three years ago after all) I opened an Etsy shop. I had no real plan, just knew that I was going to do it this time, not just talk about it. I started off pretty simply. I had this large collection of vintage buttons an I started off making hair clips with them:

Early-era hair clips, pretty "meh"

But then I started buying supplies, like earring posts and bobby pin blanks so I could do more:

Early Vintage Button Bobby Pins

Early Vintage Button Earrings

Every crafter evolves in their style or it would just get boring. I then discovered a love for these vintage "flowers" that you could stack. I am not sure what they were originally used for (does anyone know?) because I had never really seen them before in vintage jewelry. Sure I had seen vintage brooches with enamel flowers, but not plastic. So I decided "I have no idea what I am doing, but let's try and make something with these" (this would really be, and continues to be, a reoccurring theme):

Stacked Flower Hair Clip

I also started making cocktail rings, which anyone who knows me can tell you, I love a good cocktail ring, the flashier the better. These are only made out of vintage buttons and findings so not super flashy but still fun:

Adjustable Cocktail Ring

More recent creation. Actually sold right away...

Next came bows. I became obsessed with filling everyone's hair with a bow around the time I left my job. In between scouring Craigslist and various company's job boards, I made bows. Big bows. Mini bows. I saw bows in my sleep. If you have seen me in the last few months (on one of the rare occasions I leave my house), I was wearing a bow. 

Black Leather Oversized Bow. I wear one of these almost every day...

Mini Bow Trio

After taking on bows (everyone in the world is not wearing one yet, but soon, I can feel it), it was time to take on something I had been wanting to attempt for pretty much this whole time since my journey began, and that was necklaces. Keep in mind, I have never made a necklace ever. But I had a vision of what I wanted to do. So I have now embarked on making necklaces:

Chunky Multicolor Bead Necklace

I have only made two thus far (the first one was featured in my first blog post) and started a third, but you will definitely see more of these in the future of Stellaspace.

So that's my story. I am terrible at editing myself, but I could have rambled on much longer, believe me. Thank you for indulging me. 

XOXO